Hardcore hip hop - Definition and Overview

Hardcore hip hop is a form of hip hop music that has confrontational, often violent lyrics, and generally sparse, gritty urban beats. The genre began in the mid- to late 1980s with artists like Boogie Down Productions on the East Coast and Ice-T on the West. Soon after, hardcore hip hop evolved into gangsta rap with the emergence of N.W.A. and similar West Coast groups, who dominated the genre for several years. Groups such as O N Y X, with their debut album Bacdafucup and The Wu-Tang Clan's debut Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (see 1993 in music), re-energized East Coast hardcore, and the style soon dominated music charts with stars like Jay-Z and DMX.

Hardcore hip hop is also the title of a single by DJ Shadow.

See also

• Gangsta rap